evil twin

American  

[ee-vuhl twin] / ˈi vəl ˈtwɪn /

noun

1. a character in a work of fiction who is the evil identical twin, clone, or counterpart of another character.

   The actor plays two roles—the protagonist and his evil twin, who serves as an antagonist for much of the film.

2. any person or thing that is the negative counterpart of another person or thing.

   You may find yourself haunted by hope's evil twin, regret, wondering why you ever bought the stock in the first place.

3. Computers. a secret wireless internet access point set up near a legitimate one in order to gather personal or sensitive information.

---

evil twin British  

noun

1. a hidden wireless internet access point operating near a legitimate one, but which is actually used by cybercriminals to divert sensitive information such as account numbers and passwords

---

Etymology

Origin of evil twin

First recorded in 1910–15; 2005–10 evil twin for def. 3

Example Sentences

Tuck into the warm blanket of nostalgia at two of Goldenvoice’s marquee throwback fests: Just Like Heaven, the millennial indie compendium, gets a long-awaited Rilo Kiley reunion and sets from Vampire Weekend, Bloc Party and TV on the Radio; Cruel World, its goth/new wave evil twin, sports New Order, Nick Cave and a reunited Go-Go’s.

From Los Angeles Times

Kendrick loves him; Lamar guests on “Music,” and calls Carti “my evil twin” on “Good Credit.”

From Los Angeles Times

But up close, Venus is more like an evil twin: it is covered with thick clouds of sulfuric acid, and its surface has a mean temperature close to 500°C.

From Science Daily

Per the original Marvel comics, Cassandra is the evil twin of Professor Charles Xavier from the “X-Men” series, and she appears to possess mind-controlling powers.

From Los Angeles Times

Physicists know that for every fundamental particle in nature there is an antiparticle — an evil twin of identical mass but endowed with equal and opposite characteristics like charge and spin.

From New York Times